WAUSAU — Kevin Korpela has no idea how much damage was done to his grocery store or its products in Tuesday's fire. He's not even certain when he'll be able to open his doors again.

On Wednesday morning, the Downtown Grocery owner ducked under the yellow caution tape blocking off the building to get into his dark, unlit store. The front door hung wide open as he moved through and around the building with investigators, assessing the damage and trying to form his own understanding of how — or if — his business will be able to recover.

Downtown Grocery and the Evolve Fitness which is located directly above it on Third Street took the brunt of the damage in Tuesday's fire. Sweets on Third, an adjacent candy and coffee shop, suffered enough smoke damage to force its doors to close Wednesday, too.

Korpela, who spent Wednesday morning talking with investigators and insurance agents as they tried to determine the cause of the blaze, said he's enthusiastic to reopen, but he knows he won't be able to do it alone. Some businesses in the Third Street area are eagerly taking measures to lend a helping hand.

"I've never been through this before, so I'm counting on people to guide us through the process," Korpela said. ​

From its storefront, Downtown Grocery looks barely scathed by the fire, other than the glass front door that was shattered by firefighters. But the back of the building is covered in black soot and windows above the rafters are broken and jagged. Plastic parts on vehicles that were parked directly behind the building when the fire started now hang in the molten blobs that formed when the fire got hot enough to melt them.

Wausau Fire Department Battalion Chief Paul Czarapata said the fire appeared to have started outside the building, under an overhang located in the rear of Downtown Grocery. By the time the first firefighters arrived Tuesday evening, an SUV parked under the overhang was in flames, and another nearby vehicle was also damaged.

The fire was contained to the back area, but spread into the ceiling above Downtown Grocery and floors below Evolve Fitness; parts of it became trapped in the void space between the grocery store ceiling and the fitness studio's floor, forcing crews to cut holes into the studio floor to put the fire out, Czarapata said. As of Wednesday afternoon, the cause still was a mystery.

And while affected business owners work with insurance agents and investigators to get their businesses up and running, neighboring shops are eager to help out.

“It's devastating. We're a community, and we all work long hours together. It's hard to see these two great businesses suffer”

Emily Voss, owner of Voss Studios

Emily Voss, owner of the photography business Voss Studios, located just across the street, said River District businesses are pulling together to help the stores and offer condolences to Korpela and Evolve Fitness owner Dan Anderson. Downtown shops will collect donations during the First Thursdays retail event, in its last week of the season this week.

Voss ate at Downtown Grocery daily, she said, and her mother was a member of Evolve Fitness. Voss said it's easy to put herself in the owners' shoes, and most other store owners are equally empathetic.

"It's devastating. We're a community, and we all work long hours together. It's hard to see these two great businesses suffer," Voss said.

Other building owners have offered to help with storage and moving, said Dave Johnson, who owns the buildings in which the grocery and fitness center are housed. He feels a sense of unity and support between the property owners on Third Street.

Johnson said he's optimistic the two businesses will recover, but he said Korpela and Anderson each has a major business decision to make: to stay or relocate.

Anderson shared his thanks Wednesday on Facebook to the people who reached out to him, along with those who stood outside with him and other shop owners in the "freezing, smoke-filled air" Tuesday evening.

"Needless to say, Evolve will be closed for the foreseeable future," the post reads.

Korpela said he's doing whatever it takes to open as swiftly as possible, but he's not entirely certain what that will entail. At this point, he's trying to plan his next steps as best as he can. He said the community support has been incredible.

"Everyone has challenges in the world," said Korpela. "I'm fortunate to have help."